The present invention relates generally to the field of power tools. More specifically, the present invention relates to hand-held power tools that include handles that may be selectively attached to and detached from the tools.
Hand-held power tools generally include a housing and a motor contained within the housing. The motor is configured to move a tool bit or other cutting accessory at high speeds to form cuts in a workpiece (e.g., a piece of wood, drywall, tile, etc.). For example, a hand-held rotary cutting tool such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,813,805 and 6,443,675 to Kopras et al. (the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety) is configured to rotate a helical or spiral cutting tool bit that includes a sharp cutting edge wrapped in a helix around the longitudinal axis of the bit. According to this example, the tool is configured to allow the formation of cuts in a workpiece by moving the tool in a direction perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the bit (i.e., the tool is arranged normal to the workpiece surface and moved parallel to the surface of the workpiece to allow the edges of the bit to remove material from the workpiece).
Power tools such as rotary cutting tools generally include mechanisms such as switches and the like for turning the motor of the power tool on and off. Such switches may be provided in various locations on the power tool. However, such known mechanisms do not realize certain advantageous features or combinations of features as may be desirable for a user of the power tool and/or for a manufacturer of such tools. For example, certain tools may include switches which do not provide feedback to a user of the tool as to the proper position of the switch (e.g., there is no positive feedback to the user to let the user know that the switch is in the “on” position, etc.).
It would be advantageous to provide an improved mechanism for turning on and switching off power for a power tool. It would also be advantageous to provide such a mechanism that is relatively easy to assemble and that may be utilized in a battery-powered tool. It would be desirable to provide a power tool having any one or more of these or other advantageous features as may be apparent to those reviewing this disclosure.